1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the personalization of smart cards.
2. Description of the Related Art
The present invention is applicable to smart cards. Also termed chip cards, integrated circuit cards, memory cards or processor cards, a smart card is typically a credit card-sized plastic card that includes one or more semiconductor integrated circuits. A smart card can interface with a point-of-sale terminal, an ATM, or with a card reader integrated with a computer, telephone, vending machine, or a variety of other devices. The smart card may be programmed with various types of functionality such as a stored-value application, a credit or debit application, a loyalty application, cardholder information, etc. Although a plastic card is currently the medium of choice for smart cards, it is contemplated that a smart card may also be implemented in a smaller form factor, for example, it may attach to a key chain or be as small as a chip module. A smart card may also be implemented as part of a personal digital assistant, telephone, or take a different form. The below description provides an example of the possible elements of a smart card, although the present invention is applicable to a wide range of types of smart cards.
A smart card may include a microprocessor, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), non-volatile memory, an encryption module (or arithmetic unit), and a card reader (or terminal) interface. Other features may be present such as optical storage, flash EEPROM, FRAM, a clock, a random number generator, interrupt control, control logic, a charge pump, power connections, and interface contacts that allow the card to communicate with the outside world. Of course, a smart card may be implemented in many ways, and need not necessarily include a microprocessor or other features.
The microprocessor is any suitable central processing unit for executing commands and controlling the device. RAM serves as temporary storage for calculated results and as stack memory. ROM stores the operating system, fixed data, standard routines, look up tables and other permanent information. Non-volatile memory (such as EPROM or EEPROM) serves to store information that must not be lost when the card is disconnected from a power source, but that must also be alterable to accommodate data specific to individual cards or changes possible over the card lifetime. This information includes a card identification number, a personal identification number, authorization levels, cash balances, credit limits, and other information that may need to change over time. An encryption module is an optional hardware module used for performing a variety of encryption algorithms. Of course, encryption may also be performed in software.
The card reader interface includes the software and hardware necessary for communication with the outside world. A wide variety of interfaces is possible. By way of example, the interface may provide a contact interface, a close-coupled interface, a remote-coupled interface, or a variety of other interfaces. With a contact interface, signals from the integrated circuit are routed to a number of metal contacts on the outside of the card which come in physical contact with similar contacts of a card reader device. A smart card may include a traditional magnetic strip to provide compatibility with traditional card reader devices and applications, and may also provide a copy of the magnetic stripe information within the integrated circuit itself for compatibility.
Various mechanical and electrical characteristics of a smart card and aspects of its interaction with a card reader device are described in Smart Card Handbook, W. Rankl and W. Effing, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., 1997, and are defined by the following specifications, all of which are incorporated herein by reference: Visa Integrated Circuit Card Specification, Visa International Service Association, 1996; EMV Integrated Circuit Card Specification for Payment Systems, EMV Integrated Circuit Card Terminal Specification for Payment Systems, EMV Integrated Circuit Card Application Specification for Payment Systems, Visa International, Mastercard, Europay, 1996; and International Standard; Identification Cards—Integrated Circuit(s) Cards with Contacts, Parts 1-6, International Organization for Standardization, 1987-1995.
To facilitate understanding, FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a prior art system used for the personalization of a smart card. A data preparation table of values 138 and an input file 159 provide input to a preparation processing device 154. The preparation processing device 154 has two-way communications with a hardware security module 130. The preparation processing device 154 provides an output file 160, which provides input to a personalization device 150. The personalization device 150 has two-way communication with a hardware security module 152. A card supplier 170 also provides input to the personalization device 150. The personalization device 150 takes blank smart cards 172 and output personalized smart cards 180.
The data preparation tables are used to specify various options that a card issuer may desire for a smart card such as offline limits, language preferences, and card holder verification methods.
In addition to the encoding and embossing data on a smart card, there may be over forty chip data elements that need to be incorporated into the card personalization process. Some of the mandates for these data elements may be specified in the data preparation table of values 138. The data elements are identified by tag, length, and value.
Previously in order to create such tables, templates have been used to suggest table values for various card preferences. Independent programmers would create a table specifying various values. The programmers would need to know complex details about the table to correctly determine values for the table. Choosing appropriate values for the table is often too confusing and could lead to personalization errors. In addition, the process of choosing appropriate values may become too mired in the technical details, causing the user to lose sight of the business and risk management decisions that should dictate the selection of values. This process may require business people and technical people to complete this process. This may require accurate communication between the technical people and business people to reflect the desired business decisions.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating in further detail generating a data preparation table of values, used in the prior art. A stand-alone system 190 is an independent computer or computer system. Templates 192 reside on the stand alone system 190. In the alternative, the templates 192 may be a printed document that is referred to by the user of the stand alone system 190. The templates 192 are used as references or suggestions. However, a user might use the stand alone system to create a data preparation table of values 138, ignoring all of the suggestions of the template.
The complex nature of chip card personalization and the ability to generate data preparation table of values that ignore or are contrary to template suggestions has led to discrepancies in the process that in some cases have resulted in interoperability problems. Chip cards issued in one country or region, may experiencing acceptance problems when being used in terminals in other countries and regions, if data in the data preparation table of values is not correct.
A chip card may have base applications already loaded by the chip card manufacturer. The operation of the application is driven by the data elements in the data preparation table of values. The interdependency of data elements may make the process of defining the data elements more complex.
Therefore, the prior art system was difficult to use and provided an output that could cause interoperability problems.